Biochar products and method of manufacture thereof

ABSTRACT

A method for producing charcoal particles or pellets which use different additives as binders for the biochar pellets. The method includes producing a mixture with charcoal and additives selected from nanocrystalline cellulose, nanocrystalline fibrils, bentonite, and polyvinyl acetate. The mixture is created by mixing one or more of the additives with charcoal or bentonite. The mixture is then processed in a pelletizer device. While processing, the surface of the mixture is sprayed with a liquid. Once turned into pellets by way of the pelletizer device, the resulting pellets are then dried by applying heat to the pellets. The liquid can be water or a solution of water and sodium borate.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation-in-Part of PCT International PatentApplication No. PCT/CA2016/051164 filed Oct. 6, 2016, which is aContinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/878,293 filed Oct.8, 2015.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a biochar or charcoal product andmethods of producing the biochar product which incorporates differentadditives.

BACKGROUND

Biochar is a highly porous carbonized material that can be found on thesoil after a forest has burned. The porous nature of biochar and othercharcoal products has been found to provide a habitat for beneficialmicrobes that absorb toxins in the soil and convert organic detritusinto useful materials for the growth of nascent plants.

Synthetic charcoal products and biochar can be made on an industrialscale by burning wood chips and other cellulosic materials in an oxygendeficient atmosphere. Biochar in particular has a remedial benefit onthe soil due mainly to the highly porous nature of the charcoal itcontains. These pores are able to absorb toxic metals and accommodatebeneficial microbes that feed on the remaining organics, leaving thesoil fit for plant growth.

Synthetic biochar is made and traded worldwide. It is used mainly forsoil remediation and improved plant growth. Early manufacturingprocesses were essentially based upon those for making pure charcoal.The feedstock can be any cellulose containing material that willbreakdown under anoxic conditions to produce charcoal. Wood chips arepreferred. Although the cellulose in the wood decomposes mainly tocarbon and water, at high temperatures, a side reaction converts somecharcoal into biogases and bioliquids. As biochar is not a purecharcoal, it is sold at a lower price. The reaction by-products reducethe value further, as they are only marketable as cheap fuel.

The particles of synthetic biochar may be distributed on the soil withequipment used for other agricultural products, such as plant seed andpelletized fertilizer. However, since the charcoal in the biochar issomewhat friable, distribution using conventional agriculture equipmentcreates hazardous dust, and loss of useful product. Furthermore, the lowbulk density and lack of particle sizing control of the biochar causesseparation of any blend of biochar and plant seed and/or commercialfertilizer during handling and distribution. To overcome this problem,methods have been developed to protect the biochar particles with alayer of an inert ceramic material. This approach has been found tominimize product breakdown and increase bulk density. As the ceramiccoating needs to be sintered at high temperature, undesirableby-products are formed at the expense of some of the charcoal. Also, theinert coating simply disintegrates into small particles that remain inthe soil.

It should be noted that biochar may also be used in other industries.Biodiesel for sale as transportation fuel in Canada and the UnitedStates must meet strict quality guidelines (CAN/CGSB-3.524-2011 inCanada and ASTM 6751 in the U.S.). Biodiesel must have low water andglycerol content. Often biodiesel manufacturers must usepost-manufacturing desiccants and absorptive resins to remove unwantedcontaminants before the quality of the biodiesel is sufficient for sale.This is sometimes referred to as “polishing.” A biochar-based polishingagent would be advantageous because it is environmentally benign unlikesome polymeric polishing agents. Thus, disposal of the bio-based basedagent after polishing may be seen as having less of a negative impact.Because biochar is dusty and comprised of small particles that wouldcontaminate the biodiesel, using un-pelleted biochar is not an option toabsorb unwanted liquid contaminants such as water from transportationfuel. However, if biochar is densified into pellets that are robust andnon-dusty, the product can be used as a polishing agent withoutintroducing further contamination.

A biochar product that can be used as noted above would therefore beadvantageous. Not only that, but a process for producing such a product,with mechanical properties that allow its use in the biodiesel industry,would also be advantageous and desirable.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides a method for producing biochar particlesor pellets which use different additives as binders for the biocharpellets. The method includes producing a mixture with biochar andadditives selected from bentonite clay, nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC),nanocrystalline fibrils (NCF), polyvinyl acetate, and sodium borate. Themixture is created by mixing one or more of the additives with charcoalor clay. The mixture is then processed in a pelletizer device. Whileprocessing, the surface of the mixture is sprayed with a liquid. Onceturned into pellets by way of the pelletizer device, the resultingpellets are then dried by applying heat to the pellets. The liquid canbe water or a solution of water and sodium borate. Alternatively, apolyvinyl acetate solution can be added to the mixture.

In a first aspect, the present invention provides a charcoal productcomprising a porous charcoal pellet manufactured from charcoal,bentonite, and water and at least one additive selected from a groupconsisting of nanocrystalline cellulose, nanocrystalline fibrils,polyvinyl acetate, and sodium borate.

In a second aspect, the present invention provides a product comprisinga porous pellet manufactured from clay or charcoal, and water and atleast one additive selected from a group consisting of nanocrystallinecellulose, nanocrystalline fibrils, polyvinyl acetate, and sodiumborate.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for producingpellets from a base material, the method comprising:

-   a) mixing said base material with at least one additive to result in    a mixture;-   b) processing said mixture; and-   c) heating a result of step b) to produce dried pellets;    wherein said base material is clay or charcoal.

In a further aspect, the present invention provides a charcoal productcomprising a porous charcoal pellet having one or more additivesselected from a group consisting of:

-   -   nanocrystalline cellulose;    -   nanocrystalline cellulose and water;    -   nanocrystalline fibrils;    -   nanocrystalline fibrils and water;    -   polyvinyl acetate and sodium borate;    -   bentonite, nanocrystalline cellulose, and water;    -   bentonite, nanocrystalline fibrils, and water; and    -   polyvinyl acetate, water and sodium borate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments of the present invention will now be described byreference to the following figures, in which identical referencenumerals in different figures indicate identical elements and in which:

FIG. 1 is a photograph of the resulting charcoal pellets using PVA as abinder;

FIG. 2 is a photograph of the resulting charcoal pellets using bentoniteclay as a binder; and

FIG. 3 is a photograph of the resulting charcoal pellets according tothe process detailed as Example 9.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention, in one embodiment, provides a biochar or charcoalproduct having a binding agent which may be bentonite, nanocrystallinecellulose, or polyvinyl acetate. The binding agents and the methodsdisclosed are low-energy and inexpensive routes for obtaining adesirable product and do not require specialized equipment.

It should be clear that the term “biochar” as used in this documentmeans charcoal sourced from cellulose-based feedstock and is for use inimproving soils. However, for the purposes of the present invention, theterms biochar and charcoal are used interchangeably and the term“biochar” should not be taken to limit the scope of the invention.

To obtain the charcoal for use in the production of the biochar orcharcoal products of the invention, it is preferred to use charcoal witha uniform sizing of charcoal particles. Unactivated charcoal made frompine wood chips was purchased and presented with a wide variety ofparticles sizes and moisture content percentages. Charcoal preparationis critical to efficient pelleting regardless of the additives ormethodology, and it was found that a uniform distribution of charcoalparticles, which required a drying, sizing and sorting preparationprocess, was most useful. A Unotec™ silage mixer with three horizontalmixing augers was modified to have three 2″ collars welded to the bottomwhere heated air was forced through a manifold using a 1.5 hp Keho™blower. This system enabled up to 6 yards of charcoal to be mixed anddried over the course of 2-3 days of continuous operation.

The dried charcoal was then fed into a Buskirk Engineering HM1000™hammer mill for particle reduction; charcoal that was too wet pluggedthe system, while insufficient processing occurred if the charcoal wastoo dry. It was found that drying process must be tightly controlled toensure that the charcoal moisture content (percent based on weight) wasbetween 5% and 11%. A Sweco LS 24™ separator was used for size sortingin combination with an Oneida™ 2 hp cyclone creating a negative pressurethroughout the system. The undersized particles can be incorporated withthe pelleting mix to avoid waste, whereas the oversized particles mustbe recycled through the hammer mill.

A pelletizer device is used for mixing biochar or charcoal with anappropriate additive which acts as a binding or adhesion agent. Themixture is then aggregated in a rotating pelletizer device. In oneimplementation, the pelletizer device is a rotating drum with anadjustable drum angle. The bottom of the drum has a rough texturedsurface that pulls the mixture up and around. As the mixture is tumbledrepeatedly through the drum, the mixture starts to stick together insmall particles which then glomerate or aggregate into larger androunder pellets. The drum angle can be set to different angles fromhorizontal. The Agglo-Miser™ device manufactured by Mars Minerals wasused in one implementation.

According to one aspect of the invention, NCC (nanocrystallinecellulose) can be used as one of the binders for the biochar pellets.NCC is pure cellulose in crystalline form that is rod shaped, 1-100 nmin diameter and 10-200 nm in length and characterized as one of thestrongest and stiffest natural materials available. NCC is biodegradableand non-toxic with unique properties in suspension such as self-assemblythat make it a suitable candidate for biocomposites and binders. NCC hasbeen found to improve the strength of some glues, including polyvinylacetate (PVA) used in engineering wood products. This is thought to be aconsequence of NCC dispersion and self-assembly in a PVA suspension. Theoutcome of these trials whereby NCC was added to charcoal and bentoniteclay mixture illustrate how it may improve the adsorbtion qualities ofthe final product to yield a dense, durable high quality pellet. Anoptimal mixture using a PVA/NCC could be blended with a host of otheradditives to produce low-cost pellets that are durable enough to behandled using industrial equipment and to resist deterioration under anumber of different applications, including liquids filtration.

It should be noted, for clarity, that nanocrystalline cellulose isproduced after acid hydrolysis of market pulp as a source of celluloseand then refined during a centrifuge/filtration process.

In one implementation of the present invention, cat litter was used as asource of bentonite clay. This impure bentonite is a mix of mostlycalcium bentonite, some sodium bentonite and other contaminants. To usethe cat litter for this invention, the cat litter was ground and sievedto a maximum size of 1 mm to remove any large contaminating foreignmatter such as pebbles. It should be noted that, for the purposes ofthis invention, the term “bentonite” and “bentonite clay” is to includesodium bentonite, calcium bentonite, other types of bentonite, and anyclay mixtures thereof.

When charcoal is to be used with bentonite, ground charcoal is mixedwith a desired amount of bentonite and enough water to eliminate dust,but not to become noticeably wet. Pre-wetting reduced charcoal dust andimproved pelleting performance. The pre-wetted mixture is then sieved to2 mm prior to pelleting and resulted in more consistent and manageablepellet size.

It should be noted that slowly adding a liquid such as water as a finemist through a paint sprayer during pelleting was found to be anotheruseful step in ensuring consistent formation of small pellets. Manyshort applications of water (at a pressure of approximately 0.5 bar]were performed every few minutes. The water was directed at the surfaceof the tumbling mixture in the pelletizer. To avoid over-wetting, thewater was allowed to thoroughly mix for a few minutes betweenapplications.

As will be seen in the examples below, a number of different mixtureratios of bentonite and charcoal were tried. However, the best resultswere produced using a 2:1 ratio between bentonite and charcoal.

Bentonite clay is a preferred binder for biochar as:

-   -   It is cheap and widely available in U.S.A. and Canada. Bentonite        is commonly used in drilling muds.    -   Bentonite is a completely natural product.    -   Charcoal pellets made with bentonite binder, depending on the        absorbate, could be composted or applied to land after use.    -   In addition to being an inert vehicle for carrying nutrients,        fertilizers, etc., charcoal/bentonite pellets can be used for a        range of applications including animal feed supplements,        horticultural growing media, solid acid catalysts, desiccants        and polishing agents, and for soil improvement and reclamation.

Another useful additive and/or binder for biochar/charcoal pellets ispolyvinyl acetate (PVA) and sodium borate (borax). The charcoal pelletscan be bound using a mixture of polyvinyl acetate) (PVA) and sodiumborate (borax). Borate is known to cross-link PVA to form gels. Theseaqueous mixtures harden upon loss of water. It has been found thatincorporating charcoal into cross-linked PVA/borax mixtures allows forthe formation of a cohesive particle. This cohesive particle was foundto be amenable to forming a generally spherical particle on randomtumbling and this particle then hardens to a hard, dustless pellet upondrying. It was found that the PVA/borax mixture need not be formed priorto introduction of charcoal. Indeed, from a practical perspective, it ismore advantageous to mix charcoal into PVA solutions first, then, byintroduction of borax solution to the surface of such mixture, form thedesired pellets.

For the examples provided, the PVA solutions used were commercial whiteglue. For example, the commercial white glue used was 37.5% PVA, 62.5%water by mass. By incorporating charcoal into PVA solutions, handling ofthe charcoal is greatly improved and dust levels are controlled. Aphotograph of charcoal pellets which used PVA as a binder is provided inFIG. 1.

The biochar/charcoal pellets of the present invention can bemanufactured using the various methods disclosed below.

In one method, bentonite clay is used as a binder and water is used as atexture modifier for the biochar/charcoal. In one example only bentoniteclay, charcoal and water are used in the pelleting mixture. In avariant, only bentonite clay, charcoal, nanocrystalline cellulose andwater are used for the pelleting mixture. The pelleting is performedusing a rotating pelletizer at room temperature (approx. 20° C.) Therotating drum of the pelletizer is set between 10° and 40°, preferablyat 15-25°. The pre-moistened bentonite and charcoal mixture is loadedinto the pelletizer and the pelletizer is allowed to rotate with theangle set such that pelleted material, of different bulk density thanunpelleted material, migrates to the front of the pan to leave asubstantially enriched zone of pelleted material and a substantiallyenriched zone of unpelleted material. The discharge mechanism can be setso that material is removed from the pelletizer as new, unpelletedmaterial is introduced. This allows for the operation in a semi-batchmode, or the operation may occur in batch mode. In semi-batch mode, thepelleting matter is kept in the pelletizer such that material exits thepelletizer in substantially “finished” pellet form. FIG. 2 is aphotograph of the resulting charcoal pellets which used bentonite as abinder.

It should be noted that water is preferably added to the mixture in thepelletizer. In either batch or semi-batch operation, water is slowlyintroduced to the surface of the mixture as it is mixing using a finemist sprayer at low volume and low pressure, thereby maintaining amixing moisture level adequate to sustain pelleting. Applied water isallowed to homogenize or mix between applications. Excessive moisture orexcessively fast addition of water can cause clumping and largeraggregate growth. Conversely, inadequate moisture results in no pelletformation. Further, if the pellets are left too long in the pelletizer,smaller pellets aggregate into large, non-uniform pellets. Once thepellets are formed, the resulting pellets can then be dried in an oven.

In another aspect of the invention, instead of bentonite clay, polyvinylacetate (PVA) is used as a binder. For this variant of the invention,PVA and water are mixed with charcoal to form a paste. The paste is thensieved and then placed in a rotating pelletizer. As the paste ispelletized, a mixture of water and sodium borate (borax) is sprayed onto the paste. The resulting pellets are then dried in an oven forapproximately 24 hours.

The following are examples of implementations of the variants of thepresent invention. The following examples should be taken asillustrative and not an exhaustive or as limiting to the scope of thepresent invention.

Example 1

300 g of bentonite clay and 150 g of pre-prepared charcoal are mixed andthen loaded into a rotating pelletizer drum. The mixture is misted withwater from a low-pressure atomizer (e.g. an automobile paint gun). Atotal of 275 mL of water is applied. The mixture is mixed in therotating drum set at an elevation of 20° for 2 hours at room temperature(approximately 18-21° C.), after which time the mixture consists mainlyof pellets of 1 mm-1 cm diameter. The pellets are removed from the drumand dried at 70° C. for 24 hours. Pellet strength varied from weak tohard, dustless pellets.

Example 2

200 g of bentonite clay, 100 g of prepared charcoal and 50 g ofnanocrystalline cellulose are premixed then loaded into a rotatingpelletizer drum. The mixture is misted with water from a low-pressureatomizer (e.g. an automobile paint gun). A total of 275 mL water isapplied. The mixture is mixed in the rotating drum set at 20° for 1 hourand ten minutes at room temperature, then dried at 70° C. for one hour.The mixture is then loaded back into the pelletizer for 40 minutes afterwhich time the mixture consists mainly of pellets of 1 mm-1 cm diameter.The pellets are removed from the drum and dried at 70° C. Pellets arehard, angular and dustless, mainly 1-5 mm.

It should be noted that the nanocrystalline cellulose was mixed withfinely ground, sieved bentonite clay by mixing in a bread dough mixer orby hand using a mortar and pestle. Once the nanocrystalline celluloseand the bentonite have been mixed, the resulting mixture was combinedwith the charcoal.

Example 3

400 g of bentonite and 200 g of prepared charcoal are pre-mixed thenloaded into a rotating pelletizer drum. The mixture is misted with waterfrom a low-pressure atomizer (e.g. an automobile paint gun). A total of415 mL water is applied. The mixture is mixed in the rotating drum forone hour and ten minutes at room temperature, after which time themixture consists mainly of pellets of 1 mm-4 mm diameter. The pelletsare then removed from the pelletizer drum and dried at 70° C. to formdustless pellets of moderate strength.

Example 4

300 g of prepared charcoal was placed in a mixer and 200 mL watercontaining 15 g of commercial white glue (5.65 g of PVA) was mixed in toform a paste. The paste was sieved through a 2 mm sieve, then introducedinto the rotating pelletizer. As the charcoal/PVA mixture mixed in thepelletizer, a solution of borax (15 g of sodium borate in a total of 500mL of liquid) was applied to the surface of the mixture in short burstsusing an automotive paint spray gun using an approximate pressure of 10psi on the spray gun.

It should be noted that, when sodium borate is used, slow, carefuladdition of the borax solution is useful for ensuring consistent pelletformation. For this example, four to six applications of the sodiumborate solution were made with the applications being separated by a fewminutes. Each application of the solution was directed to the surface ofthe mixture in the pelletizer. To avoid over-wetting, the charcoal wasallowed to thoroughly mix for a few minutes between applications of thesolution. The total amount of borax or sodium borate solution appliedwas 310 mL, using 9.3 g of sodium borate. The angle of the pelletizerwas set at 25° for the first 5 minutes, then lowered to 18° for thirtyminutes then finally decreased to 15° until the pellets formed. Thepelleting temperature was approximately 20° C. After two hours, thepelleted product was removed from the pelletizer and dried in a gravityoven at 70° C. for 24 hours. The pellets were approximately 3-4 mm andnot very spherical. Most of the resulting pellets were hard, but somewere brittle.

Example 5

150 g of prepared charcoal was placed in a mixer and 200 mL watercontaining 20 g of commercial white glue (7.50 g of PVA) was mixed in toform a paste mixture. The paste mixture was sieved through a 2 mm sieveand then introduced into the rotating pelletizer. As the charcoal-PVAmixture mixed in the pelletizer, a solution of borax (10 g of sodiumborate in 100 mL of water) was applied to the surface of the compositionin short bursts by use of an automotive paint spray gun. The pressuresetting for the spray guy was set to approximately 10 psi.

Similar to the procedure in Example 4 above, four to six applications ofthe borax solution were made every few minutes, each application beingdirected to the surface of the mixture. To avoid over-wetting, thecharcoal was allowed to thoroughly mix for a few minutes betweenapplications. The total amount of borax solution applied was 145 mL(containing a total of 14.5 g of sodium borate).

For the pelletizer, the angle of the pelletizer drum was set at 25° forthe first 10 minutes, then lowered to 15° for sixteen minutes thenfinally decreased to 12° until the pellets formed. The pelletingtemperature was approximately 20° C. After 2.5 hours in the pelletizer,the pelleted mixture was removed from the pelletizer and dried in agravity oven at 70° C. for 24 hours. The pellets were fairly uniform insize at approximately 6-8 mm per pellet.

Example 6

300 g of prepared charcoal was placed in a mixer and 400 mL watercontaining 80 g of commercial white glue (with 30 g of PVA) was mixed into form a paste mixture. The paste mixture was sieved through a 2 mmsieve and then introduced into the rotating pelletizer. As thecharcoal-PVA mixture rotated in the pelletizer, a solution of borax(with a total of 50 g of sodium in 500 mL of water) was applied to thesurface of the composition in short bursts using an automotive paintspray gun. The pressure setting for the spray gun was set atapproximately 10 psi.

As with Examples 4 and 5 above, at total of four to six applications ofthe borax solution were made every few minutes, directed to the surfaceof the mixture. To avoid over-wetting, the charcoal was allowed tothoroughly mix for a few minutes between applications. The total amountof borax solution applied was 120 mL using 12 g of sodium borate.

For the pelletizer, the pelletizer drum was set at an angle of 25° forthe first 5 minutes, then lowered to 18° for fifty minutes then finallydecreased to 15° until the pellets formed. The pelleting temperature wasapproximately 20° C. After two hours, the resulting pellets were removedfrom the pelletizer and dried in a gravity oven at 70° C. for 24 hours.The pellets were fairly uniform in size, the majority beingapproximately 1-2 mm in size. Pellets were very hard and not dusty.

The resulting biochar/charcoal pellets were tested for their ability toabsorb moisture from biodiesel. The results given below were obtained.

To demonstrate the utility of the charcoal pellets as absorbants,charcoal pellets were compared to commercial absorbants for theirability to absorb water from biodiesel. In one test, two samples ofbiodiesel were obtained and water was added to each to obtain a finalwater contents of 808.1 ppm (BDa) and 803.3 ppm (BDb) (measured by KarlFischer titration). Two commercial absorbants, Eco2Pure™ and Purolite™PD206 were tested against the charcoal pellets obtained using theprocedure in Examples 3 and 6. The pellets from Example 3 used abentonite binder while the pellets from Example 6 used a PVA/boraxbinder.

The commercial absorbants and the charcoal pellets were each loaded intoglass chromatography columns equipped with Teflon stopcocks. 81.5 g ofeach test article was loaded into each of the chromatography columns andwet biodiesel was passed through each test article.

The residence time for the biodiesel (i.e. the time the biodiesel was inthe columns) was adjusted beforehand so that the biodiesel contactedeach sample for approximately the same amount of time. 100 mL of eitherBDa or BDb was passed through each test article and the water content ofthe biodiesel was measured after by Karl Fischer titration.

Oven-dried Eco2Pure reduced the water concentration by 92%, and Purolite(as-received) reduced the water concentration by 84%. Purolite,oven-dried to negligible moisture content, reduced water concentrationin biodiesel by 96%. The biochar pellets using bentonite as a binderreduced the water concentration by 81%. The biochar pellets using thePVA/borax mix as a binder reduced the water concentration in thebiodiesel by 88%.

TABLE 1 Water concentration reduction in biodiesel by various absorbantsFiltra- volume weight water tion of of Water reduc- Sample time pelletspellets Tested content tion in ID (h) (mL) (g) on (ppm) % Wetted 808.1biodiesel ppm batch 1 (BDa) Wetted 803.3 biodiesel ppm batch 2 (BDb)Eco2Pure 2:16 330 81.5 BDa 65.6 91.88% ppm Purolite 1:55 100 81.5 BDa128.6 84.09% ppm Purolite 1:58 100 81.5 BDb 34.7 95.68% (dried) ppmExample 6 1:56 270 81.5 BDb 98.7 87.71% ppm Example 3 1:59 143 81.5 BDa154.5 80.88% ppm

To further test the samples, a second test was run in which the volume,rather than the mass of the test absorbant, was kept constant.Approximately 46 mL of charcoal pellets obtained as discussed inExamples 1-5 were used. The samples were loaded into glasschromatography columns. A sample of biodiesel was obtained and wetted toa water concentration of 904.9 ppm (measured by Karl Fischer titration).Additional testing subjects (commercial absorbants from Eco2Pure™ andPurolite™) were each loaded into glass chromatography columns equippedwith Teflon stopcocks and wet biodiesel was passed through each testarticle. As in the first test, the residence time was adjustedbeforehand so that the biodiesel passed through each test article inapproximately the same amount of time.

The charcoal pellets (using a charcoal:bentonite mass ratio of 1:2) fromExample 3 (pelletized for 1 hours and ten minutes) only removed 15% ofwater. However, the charcoal pellets from Example 1 (using the same massratio of charcoal to bentonite but which was pelletized for 2 hours)removed 80% of water.

Most surprisingly, the charcoal pellets which used NCC in addition tothe bentonite removed 90% of the water in the biodiesel. For thissample, a mass ratio of charcoal/bentonite/NCC of 2:24:1 was used. Thecharcoal/PVA/borax pellets obtained in Example 4 only removed 31% of thewater while the charcoal/PVA/borax pellets from Example 5 removed 61% ofwater.

TABLE 2 Water concentration reduction of biodiesel by charcoal/bentoniteand charcoal/PVA/borax pellets mass of water Filtration volume ofpellets Water reduction Sample ID time (h) pellets (mL) (g) content in %Wetted 904.9 ppm biodiesel Example 5 1.24 45 11.49 349.1 ppm 61.42%Example 1 1.25 46 30.97 185.1 ppm 79.54% Example 2 1.25 47 27.85  85.7ppm 90.53% Example 4 1.34 45 10.60 626.4 ppm 30.78% Example 3 1.15 4625.22 772.8 ppm 14.60%

To demonstrate the utility of the charcoal pellets as glycerolabsorbants, charcoal pellets were compared to commercial absorbants fortheir ability to absorb glycerol from crude biodiesel.

Two biodiesel samples were obtained with a glycerol content of 0.0034%and 0.0092% by mass (measured by gas chromatography). Two commercialabsorbants, Eco2Pure™ and Purolite™ PD206, and the charcoal pelletsobtained using the process in Example 6 and Example 3 were compared. Thepellets from Example 6 used a PVA/borax binder while the pellets fromExample 3 used a bentonite binder. The absorbants to be tested, alongwith the charcoal pellets, were each loaded separately into glasschromatography columns equipped with Teflon stopcocks. The testabsorbants were loaded into each of the chromatography columns andbiodiesel was passed through each test article. As with the tests above,the residence time was adjusted beforehand so that the biodieselcontacted each absorbant for approximately the same amount of time. 100mL of biodiesel containing glycerol was passed through each test articleand the glycerol content of the biodiesel was measured after this usinggas chromatography. The Eco2Pure absorbant reduced the glycerolconcentration by 41.7% while the Purolite absorbant reduced glycerolconcentration by 91.3%. In comparison, the charcoal pellets which usedthe PVA/borax binder reduced the glycerol concentration by 26.5%. Thecharcoal pellets which used the bentonite binder reduced the glycerolcontent by 84.8%. The results are detailed in Table 3 below.

TABLE 3 Glycerol concentration reduction of biodiesel bycharcoal/PVA/borax pellets compared to commercial absorbants Filtra-volume glycerol tion of mass of glycerol reduc- Sample time pelletspellets Tested content tion in ID (h) (mL) (g) on (mass %) % Biodiesel0.0034 with glycerol Eco2Pure 2:16 330 81.5 BD#1 0.0020 41.2 Purolite1:58 100 81.5 BD#2 0.0008 91.3 Example 6 1:56 270 81.5 BD#1 0.0025 26.5Example 3 1:59 143 81.5 BD#2 0.0014 84.8

As noted above, the resulting biochar pellets may be used in themanufacture of biodiesel. These biochar/charcoal pellets may also beused in esterifications and transesterification reactions other thanbiodiesel manufacture. The charcoal pellets may also be used as aconvenient biodiesel desiccant. Alternatively, un-densified charcoal mayalso be used in a sealed cartridge or similar as a disposable fixed bedbiodiesel desiccant. Accordingly, it should be clear that the resultingproduct may be used as a biodiesel desiccant, a transportation fueldesiccant, a dessicant for liquid hydrocarbon mixture, or as an organicsolution desiccant.

In addition to the above examples, further examples and tests of theefficacy of various implementations of the invention are presentedbelow.

Example 7

A sample composed of charcoal and bentonite clay was used for this test.The sample material consisted of 16% charcoal (140 g) and 84% bentoniteclay (720 g). The two materials were mixed in the agglomerizer drum for20 minutes. A 5% solution of diluted PVA (100 ml) was sprayedsporadically while the drum speed was alternated between 30-50 rpm andwhile the drum angle was varied between 5-30 degrees. The treatment wascontinued until most of the material (approximately 90% of the material)had formed into pellets. The pellets were then sprayed with a 20% sodiumborate solution (20 ml) at a pressure of 1 atm until the pellets werecoated. The pellets were then screened to under 1.0 mm and then dried at75 degrees Celsius for 60 minutes. The pellets were very hard and dustyand high product loss occurred due to clumping.

Example 8

For this trial, the raw materials used were charcoal (28%), bentoniteclay (57%), and nanocrystalline cellulose or NCC (14%). The sampleconsisted of 100 g of charcoal, 200 g of bentonite clay, and 50 g ofNCC. The clay and the NCC were blended together and tumble mixed in theagglomerizer drum for 20 minutes. The charcoal was then added and a 5%solution of diluted PVA (100 ml) was sprayed sporadically while the drumspeed was alternated between 20-50 rpm and while the drum angle wasvaried between 5-30 degrees. The treatment was continued until most ofthe material (approximately 90%) had formed into pellets. The resultingpellets were then air-dried (at approximately 20 degrees Celsius) for 30min. The air dried pellets were then re-introduced into the agglomerizerdrum where a 20% sodium borate solution (20 ml) was applied (or sprayed)at a pressure of 1 atm until the pellets were coated. The resultingpellets were then screened to under 1.0 mm and then dried at 75 degreesCelsius for 60 minutes. The final pellets were competent (although notas hard as Example 7) with minimal dust.

From Example 8, it concluded that lowering the clay component appearedto reduce the hardness (and dustiness) of the pellet. Adding the twostep pelleting process resulted in an improvement in pellet size controland conversion rate, and it may also be useful to the pellet hardness asthe sodium borate can effectively cross link with the PVA to create asurface coating.

Example 9

For this trial, the raw materials used were 28% charcoal, 58% bentoniteclay, and 14% NCC. In terms of quantity, 56 g of charcoal, 115 g ofbentonite clay, and 28 g of NCC were used. The clay and the NCC wereplaced in a sealed container and tumble mixed on low speed (20 rpm) for20 minutes. The charcoal was then added to the mix in the agglomerizer.A 2.5% solution of diluted PVA (100 ml) was sprayed sporadically on tothe mixture while the drum speed was alternated between 20-50 rpm andwhile the drum angle was varied between 5-30 degrees. This was continueduntil most of the material (approximately 90%) had formed into pellets.The pellets were then air-dried at 20 degrees Celsius for 30 min. Theair dried pellets were then re-introduced into the agglomerizer drum anda 20% solution of sodium borate (20 ml) was sprayed or applied as acoating liquid at a pressure of 1 atm until the pellets were coated. Theresulting pellets were then screened to under 1.0 mm and then dried at75 degrees Celsius for 60 minutes.

From Example 9, it would seem that reducing the PVA input did not appearto have an effect on the resulting pellets.

From the trials of Examples 7-9, it would seem that a dense, durablepellet is possible when just clay and charcoal are blended with the clayforming the highest fraction (i.e. more than 60%) as shown in Example 7.That is, the clay adds both bulk density and durability. It thereforefollows from Examples 7-9 that the clay fraction can be reduced, andthat pellet hardness may be achieved by alternate means, such as addinga polymer binder.

A 177 g sample from Example 9 was used for testing after screening toisolate the size between 005-1.0 mm (see FIG. 3). The testing procedurebelow illustrates how a sample from the trial of Example 9 was thentested for its ability to act as adsorbent or polishing agent to purifybiodiesel.

A canola-based sample of B100 was spiked with de-ionized water, glycerol(obtained from Sigma Aldrich, Catalogue #1-9161-2, lot# MA00336MA),glycerides (obtained as ASTM D6584 Standard Solution 5 containing1-Monooleoyl-RAC-Glycerol, 1,3-Diolein, and Triolein, Sigma AldrichCatalogue #44917-U, Lot # LC15115V), and oleic acid (Sigma AldrichCatalogue #1-6224, lot#525067) to approximately 10% off the ASTM D6751biodiesel specification limits for these constituents. This spikedsample was then used to test the ability of the resulting pellets fromExample 9 for its adsorbent or polishing agent abilities to purifybiodiesel.

About 125 mL of the resulting pellets from Example 9 was loaded in aglass filtration column of 3.81 cm of inner diameter. Samples ofPurolite™ PD206 and the sample from Example 9 (the adsorbents) weredried in an oven overnight at about 110° C. before being loaded into thefiltration column. In order to avoid any channeling through the voidspaces, the adsorbent columns were packed as tight as possible bymoderately tapping the wall of the column while it was being filled.Glass wool was used to hold the adsorbent in its place in the column.Subsequently, 440 mL of biodiesel was poured at the top of each columnand was allowed to filter through the adsorbent at an approximately 10mL/min flow rate. Other experimental conditions are given Table 4 below.The filtered biodiesel was collected, measured in weight, and was testedfor the properties listed in Table 5 below.

TABLE 4 Experimental conditions for testing adsorbent ability of Example9 pellets Property Purolite ™ PD206 Example 9 Volume of adsorbent loaded125 125 (ml) Mass of adsorbent loaded 107 53.7 (g) Mass of biodieselfiltered 359 352.8 (g) Time taken to filter (min) 47 46

The filtered biodiesel was collected, measured in weight, and was testedfor the properties listed in Table 5 below.

TABLE 5 Properties of biodiesel determined before and after filtrationSpiked Biodiesel Purolite ™ Example 9 ASTM Sample Filtrate FiltrateD6571 Property/Units/Test [FL16- [FL16- [FL16- Spec. Method 0846-006]0846-007] 0846-008] Limits Water Content, 856 170 184 500 mg/kg. (ASTMD6304) Free Glycerin, mass <0.005 <0.001 <0.001 0.020 % (ASTM D6584)Total Glycerin, 0.106 0.104 0.098 0.240 mass % (ASTM D6584) TotalMonglyceride, 0.288 0.289 0.268 — mass % (ASTM D6584) Total Diglyceride,0.135 0.136 0.136 — mass % (ASTM D6584) Total Triglyceride, 0.075 0.0760.077 — mass % (ASTM D6584) Acid Number, 0.46 0.47 0.45 0.50 mgKOH/g(ASTM D664) Type of End Point

Referring to Table 6 below, the table summarizes the reproducibility andrepeatability of the tests used to determine the biodiesel propertieslisted in Table 5. It should be noted that repeatability is thedifference expected between successive results obtained by the sameoperator using the same equipment under constant operating conditions onidentical test material and will exceed the reported values only 1 casein 20. As well, it should be noted that reproducibility is thedifference expected between two single and independent results obtainedby different operators working in different laboratories on identicaltest materials, and will exceed the reported values only 1 case in 20.

TABLE 6 Repeatability and Reproducibility of the Test ASTM methods usedin determining the properties of the biodiesel listed in Table 5 SpikedBiodiesel Purolite ™ Example 9 ASTM Sample Filtrate Filtrate D6571Property/Units/Test [FL16- [FL16- [FL16- Spec. Method 0846-006]0846-007] 0846-008] Limits Water Content, 856 170 184 500 mg/kg. (ASTMD6304) Free Glycerin, mass <0.005 <0.001 <0.001 0.020 % (ASTM D6584)Total Glycerin, 0.106 0.104 0.098 0.240 mass % (ASTM D6584) TotalMonglyceride, 0.288 0.289 0.268 — mass % (ASTM D6584) Total Diglyceride,0.135 0.136 0.136 — mass % (ASTM D6584) Total Triglyceride, 0.075 0.0760.077 — mass % (ASTM D6584) Acid Number, 0.46 0.47 0.45 0.50 mgKOH/g(ASTM D664) Type of End Point

The production of biodiesel, which is a fatty acid methyl ester (FAME),starts when feedstock of triglycerides reacts with methanol and acatalyst, and breaks down to first diglycerides, then to monoglycerides,and then finally to FAME and a residual product of free glycerol. Areaction that achieves 100 percent conversion to FAME is unlikely andthus unreacted triglycerides from the feedstock can contaminate thefinal product. This contamination, which includes the unreactedtriglycerides and the intermediates mono- and diglycerides, iscollectively known as bound glycerol. The free glycerol may alsocontaminate the FAME if it is not completely removed during theseparation phase(s). The sum of the bound and the free glycerol isreferred to as total glycerol.

ASTM D6584 provides a standardized method for the determination of freeglycerol and total (free+bound) glycerol using high temperature gaschromatography. Low levels of free and bound glycerol are critical tothe performance of biodiesel fuels, as these contaminants can contributeto the formation of deposits on injector nozzles, pistons, valves,filters and storage tanks. The results of the lab tests shown in Table 5above illustrate that 50 percent less (by mass) of the Example 9adsorbent performed equally, or slightly better than the Purolite™ PD206as a method to remove the free and bound glycerol contaminants.

ASTM D6304 is test to determine the level of entrained water inbiodiesel. A series of water washes are often used to treat the crudeFAME to remove the methanol, catalyst and any free and bound glycerolsthat might remain. However, the water may also become a source ofcontamination that must be removed during a final polishing step. Thepresence of water in fuels can lead to premature corrosion and wear, anincrease in the debris load resulting in diminished lubrication andpremature plugging of filters, an impedance in the effect of additives,and undesirable support of deleterious bacterial growth. The resultsfrom the testing shown in Table 5 above illustrate that 50 percent less(by mass) of the Example 9 adsorbent performed on par with the Purolite™PD206, removing 78% and 80% of the water, respectively, from the spikedsample.

ASTM D664 is a test to determine the quantity of catalyst (KOH) thatremains in the washed FAME as a measure of its purity. Any remainingcatalyst may react with the free and bound glycerol to form soap, whichcan clog filters. The acid number is also an indication of the oxidativestability of the FAME with a lower acid number associated with increasedstability. The results from the testing shown in Table 5 aboveillustrate that 50 percent less (by mass) of the Example 9 adsorbentreduced the acid number, whereas Purolite™ PD206 actually showed anincreased acid number compared to the spiked sample.

The pellets from Example 9 were also subjected to testing using ASTMC837 methylene blue (MB) for surface area/cation exchange capacity. Themethylene blue index was recorded at 51 meq/100 g and reflects theaffinity that methylene blue has for the bentonite clay in the sample.The MB index is also used as a measure of cation exchange capacity giventhat the methylene blue aggressively displaces weakly held cations, suchas sodium and calcium that are commonly found in bentonite clay.

The pellets from Example 9 were also subjected to a second test todirectly measure surface area and pore space and volume using aQuantachrome autosorb iQ analyser for BET theory/surface area and DFTtheory/pore space and volume. The measurement of 44.6 m2/g is expectedfor bentonite clay or a low-grade charcoal, but it is not possible toisolate the relative contribution of the two inputs.

A further example, this time using NCF (nanocrystalline fibrils), wasalso created. There are at least two variants of nanocellulose that canbe incorporated with pellet manufacturing, including nanocrystallinecellulose (NCC) and nanocrystalline fibrils (NCF). Both products arefrom woody feedstock, but they differ in that NCC is manufactured usingstrong acids to create very small particles (3-4 nm diameter and 1-2 μmlength), whereas NCF is manufactured using chemio-mechanical methods toproduce relatively larger particles (15-60 nm diameter and lengths up to1-4 mm), giving it a high aspect ratio. NCF also has high specificstrength and surface area, but it costs less (compared to NCC) and itshigh aspect ratio make it the preferred choice for bio-composite productmanufacturing. Moreover, NCF is useful as a low concentration (e.g. 3%)colloidal paste that can serve as a foaming agent when blendingmaterials to manufacture mesoporous solid products. Capturing theporosity benefits of the NCF may require customized curing processes,such as adding a curing agent like PVA and changing the drying method.

It should be clear that considerable flexibility can be envisioned whenthe blend is formed into a viscous paste that enables a change inmanufacturing method by switching from agglomerization to an extrusionsystem to form pellets. The manufacturer can change the productionsystem depending on cost constraints and the desired pelletcharacteristics.

It should also be clear that, in another aspect of the presentinvention, other types of clay other than bentonite clay may be usedwith some of the aspects of the invention. As an example, kaolinite claymay also be used. The simply structure of kaolinite clay may actually bebetter suited for some of the applications of the resulting pellets.

Note that both NCF and NCC can demonstrate high specific strength, highsurface area, thermal stability and functionalizable surface chemistry.It follows that both NCC and NCF can be used individually, or incombination with each other when manufacturing bio-composite materialsdepending on availability, desired functionality, cost constraints, andmanufacturing method.

It is possible to adjust the formulation when producing a bio-compositeproduct made from a blend of charcoal, clay and one or both of the twovariants of nanocellulose (i.e. NCC and NCF). For example, a pellet thatis required to have high cation exchange capacity may be largely madefrom clay species that are known to have this characteristic.Alternatively, if sulphate activation is required to create a chemicallyreactive pellet, then an activated charcoal might be the mainconstituent. Another variant would have an activated NCC that has beenmodified to change its surface chemistry added to the blend with NCFpaste to create a reactive, porous pellet. In this example, bentoniteclay provides bulk density and the charcoal acts as a scaffold thatinterrupts the continuity of the clay to increase pellet porosity.Another form of the product would have high concentrations of charcoalalong with NCC and/or NCF with lesser amounts of clay to lower bulkdensity. One example that uses NCF is that in Example 10.

Example 10

For this trial, the raw materials used were 21% charcoal, 42% bentoniteclay, and 37% NCF. In terms of quantity, 100 g of charcoal, 200 g ofbentonite clay, and 175 g of NCF were used. The NCF was in the form of aviscous solution with 3% solids. The blend was mixed together manuallyto form a paste and the paste was added to a 60 ml syringe. The syringewas then used to extrude a continuous worm casting. The casting was thenheated in an oven at 150° C. for 20 minutes. The dry casting was thencrushed using a mortar and pestle until pellet fragments formed werereduced to less 1.0 mm. The pellets were then separated using a sieve tocollect a sample that was sorted to between 0.2 mm and 1.0 mm and usedfor testing.

It should be clear that the NCF used in Example 10 was in the form of a3% paste (97% water) and, as such, no additional water was used in theformulation.

To test the results of Example 10, the pellets were subjected to testingusing ASTM C837 methylene blue for surface area/cation exchangecapacity, and to the Quantachrome autosorb iQ analyser for BETtheory/surface area and DFT theory/pore space and volume. The MB indexwas measured as 45 meg/100 g, which is lower than the 51 meg/100 grecorded for Example 9. This is likely a reflection of the fact thatExample 9 had relatively more clay compared to Example 10. The surfacearea measurement of 51.2 m2/g is higher than Example 9, which mayreflect the fact that there was relatively more charcoal in the Example10. The higher surface area may also reflect the change in productionmethod for Example 10, and that switching to extrusion with the NCFfunctioning as a binder could yield a more porous pellet.

It should also be clear that pellets that are devoid of charcoal, thatis, pellets that are mostly clay and NCF or NCC, are also possible.Other additives such as NCC may also be used. These clay pellets can beused in fields similar to those for charcoal pellets. As examples, bothclay pellets and charcoal pellets may be used for: biodieselmanufacturing, animal feed supplements, organic solution dessicant,liquid hydrocarbon mixture dessicant, and liquids purification. Oneexample of such a clay pellet is explained as Example 11 below.

Example 11

For this trial, the raw materials used were 67% bentonite clay, and 33%NCF. In terms of quantity, 200 g of bentonite clay, and 100 g of NCFwere used. The NCF was in the form of a viscous solution with 3% solids.The blend was mixed together manually to form a paste and the paste wasadded to a 60 ml syringe. The syringe was then used to extrude acontinuous worm casting. The casting was then heated in an oven at 150°C. for 20 minutes. The dry casting was then crushed using a mortar andpestle until pellet fragments formed were reduced to less 1.0 mm.

As can be seen, the use of additives such as NCC and bentonite clay tocharcoal allows for the manufacture of pellets with a number of uses.From the various examples above, depending on the desired result, aliquid of some sort was found to promote the formation of pellets fromthe charcoal mixture. In some of the examples, water was added to thecharcoal and to the additive(s) to promote the formation of pellets. Insome implementations, the liquid used to promote the formation ofpellets was a PVA solution and, in some implementations the PVA was theadditive.

The advantages of the resulting biochar/charcoal pellets are numerous.These charcoal pellets manufactured using the above procedures are inertto biodiesel at room temperature, i.e. they do not catalyze or reactchemically with biodiesel. As another advantage, these biochar/charcoalpellets absorb unwanted biodiesel contaminants such as water andglycerol. The charcoal pellets also maintain their shape and do notdissolve (up to 48 hours tested), so the pellets are easily removed fromthe biodiesel. The shape and size of the pellets lends itself toconvenient large-scale processing options, such as fixed-bed flowthrough reactors in which the charcoal desiccant remains stationary andthe biodiesel is passed through the resin bed. The charcoal desiccant,when spent, can be disposed of harmlessly in landfills as a bio-basedproduct.

The biochar/charcoal pellets may also be used for other purposes. As anexample, the end product may be used as a supplement for animal feed.Activated charcoal is known to be effective at treating parasiticinfections in different ruminant animals, including cattle and sheep(see Mundt, H-C., et al. Parasitol Resistance, August 2007; 101(Supplement 1): 93-104, 17661113, Cit:2.). Therapeutic variants are soldcommercially where charcoal is combined with various sulphaletamides forthe treatment of coccidiosis infection in beef cattle, dairy cattle,veal and sheep. Research has shown that adding charcoal to the diet ofchicken broilers and laying hens can improve growth performance duringthe first 28 days of fattening and reduced cracked eggs if added as adietary supplement to laying hens (see Kutlu, H-R., Unsal, I., Gorgulu,M., Animal Feed Science and Technology, 2001, vol 90, n3-4, pp. 213-226.ISSN 0377-8401.).

The resulting product of one aspect of the invention is thus useful in anumber of industries. The resulting charcoal pellets can be used forbiodiesel manufacturing, as an animal feed supplement, inesterifications reactions, in transesterification reactions, as anorganic solution dessicant, and as a liquid hydrocarbon mixturedessicant.

For a more thorough understanding of the present invention, thefollowing references, the contents of which are hereby incorporated byreference, may be consulted:

-   Edmond Lam, et al., Applications of functionalized and    nanoparticle-modified nanocrystalline cellulose, Trends in    Biotechnology, May 2012 Vol. 30, No. 5.-   Habibi, Youssef, et al., Cellulose Nanocyrstals: Chemistry,    Self-Assembly and Applications, March 2010, Chem. Rev. 110, pp.    3479-3500.-   Tetreau, P. Impact of Nanotechnology in Alberta, Nanocyrstalline    Cellulose, Oct. 30, 2010, University of Alberta.-   Kaboorani, A., et al., Nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC): A renewable    nano-material for polyvinyl acetate (PVA) adhesive. European Polymer    Journal 48, (2012) 1829-1837.-   Habibi Y, Lucia L A, Rojas O J. (2010) Cellulose Nanocrystals:    Chemistry, Self-assembly and Applications. Chemical Reviews    110:3479-3500-   Peng B L, Dhar N, Liu H L, Tam K C. (2011) Chemistry and    applications of nanocrystalline cellulose and its derivatives: A    nanotechnology perspective. The Canadian Journal of Chemical    Engineering 89[5]:1191-1206-   Siqueira G, Bras J, Dufresne A. [2010] Polymers 2(4) 728-765-   Moon R J, Martini A, Nairn J, Simonsen J, Youngblood J. (2011)    Cellulose nanomaterials review: structure, properties and    nanocomposites. Chem. Soc. Rev. 40:394-1-3994-   Angelova L V, Terech P, Natali I, Dei L, Carretti E, Weiss    R G. (2011) Cosolvent Gel-like Materials from Partially Hydrolyzed    Poly(vinyl acetate)s and Borax. Langmuir 27:1 1671-1 1682-   Prasai T. P, et al, (2016) Biochar, Bentonite and Zeolite    Supplmental Feeding of Layer Chickens Alters Intestinal Microbiota    and Reduces Campylobacter Load, PLoS ONE 11(4): e0154061.    Doi:10.1371/journal.pone.-   Lavoine N., Bergstrom L., (2017) Nanocellulose-based foams and    aerogels: processing, properties, and applications J. Mater Chem. A    2017, 5. 16105-   George J., Sabapathi S N., (2015) Cellulose nanocrystals: synthesis,    functional properties, and applications, Nanotechnology Science and    Applications; 8: 45-54, Published online 2015 Nov. 4. doi:    10.2147/NSA.S64386.-   Kaminsky H., (2014) Demystifying the methylene blue index, Suncor    Energy Inc. Conference Paper,    www.researchgate.net/publication/282662304 DEMYSTIFYING    THE-METHYLENE_BLUE-INDEX [accessed Mar. 14, 2018].

A person understanding this invention may now conceive of alternativestructures and embodiments or variations of the above all of which areintended to fall within the scope of the invention as defined in theclaims that follow.

We claim:
 1. A charcoal product comprising a porous charcoal pellethaving one or more additives selected from a group consisting of:nanocrystalline cellulose; nanocrystalline cellulose and water;nanocrystalline fibrils; nanocrystalline fibrils and water; polyvinylacetate and sodium borate; bentonite, nanocrystalline cellulose, andwater; bentonite, nanocrystalline fibrils, and water; and polyvinylacetate, water and sodium borate.
 2. The charcoal product according toclaim 1, wherein said one or more additives comprises at least one of:nanocrystalline cellulose and nanocrystalline fibrils.
 3. The charcoalproduct according to claim 1, wherein said charcoal product ismanufactured using an extrusion step.
 4. The charcoal product accordingto claim 1, wherein said charcoal product is manufactured using apelletizing step.
 5. The charcoal product according to claim 1, whereinsaid bentonite is used as a binder for said pellet.
 6. The charcoalproduct according to claim 1, wherein said polyvinyl acetate is used asa binder for said pellet.
 7. The charcoal product according to claim 1,wherein said polyvinyl acetate and said sodium borate are used asbinders for said pellet.
 8. The charcoal product according to claim 1,wherein said product is for at least one of: biodiesel manufacturing;animal feed supplement; soil amendment; esterifications reactions;transesterification reactions; organic solution dessicant; liquidhydrocarbon mixture dessicant; and liquids purification.
 9. A productcomprising a porous pellet manufactured from clay or charcoal, and waterand at least one additive selected from a group consisting ofnanocrystalline cellulose, nanocrystalline fibrils, polyvinyl acetate,and sodium borate.
 10. The product according to claim 9, wherein saidproduct is manufactured from clay, water, and at least one of:nanocrystalline cellulose and nanocrystalline fibrils.
 11. The productaccording to claim 9, wherein said product for use in at least one of:biodiesel manufacturing; animal feed supplements; organic solutiondessicant; liquid hydrocarbon mixture dessicant; and liquidspurification.
 12. A method for producing pellets from a base material,the method comprising: a) mixing said base material with at least oneadditive to result in a mixture; b) processing said mixture; and c)heating a result of step b) to produce dried pellets; wherein said basematerial is clay or charcoal.
 13. The method according to claim 12,wherein step b) comprises using a pelletizer device to force saidmixture to tumble and to thereby produce pellets.
 14. The methodaccording to claim 12, wherein step b) comprises extruding said mixture.15. The method according to claim 14, wherein step c) comprises heatinga result of step b) and crushing a resulting dried extrudate to producepellet fragments.
 16. The method according to claim 12, wherein said atleast one additive is one or more of: bentonite, nanocrystallinecellulose, nanocrystalline fibrils, polyvinyl acetate, and sodiumborate.